09.08.2017
The Galilee Society has recently participated in the Second National Forum for Scientists in Palestine which was organized by the Higher Council for Innovation and Excellence in Ramallah. Our representatives from the Galilee Society presented scientific ideas and inventions as success stories which all participants in the Forum could use and apply as a progressive and successful model.
The Forum focused on various scientific fields: energy and renewable energy, health and medicine, innovation in improving education and agriculture. The Galilee Society delegation to the Forum included Mr. Baker Awawdy, General Director; Prof. Ashraf Ibrik, member of the GS board; Prof. Esam Sabbah; Prof. Anwar Rayyan; Dr. Katie Baransi-Karkaby; and Dr. Sobhi Bashir, owner of Trans BioDiesel. The Forum was attended by scientists and innovators, business men and women, and decision makers from Palestine and all over the world. The Forum put a spotlight on the achievements and work of the participants, who have managed to offer rays of hope with their work despite the political aggressions that Palestinians all over the country face.
“For us it was an opportunity to meet scientists from the diaspora and from Palestine and to connect with and exchange experiences. In addition we were able to present our scientific research as a developed and progressive experience and a model that can be implemented elsewhere,” says Prof. Esam Sabbah, owner of AgRobics, “I would also like to mention that there were great scientific presentations by students of Palestinians Institutes, which I think given the chance and sponsorship will be very successful.”
Prof. Anwar Rayyan added, “Participating in Forums such as this and presenting our scientific experience and exchanging ideas between us Palestinians is extremely important, especially to the Palestinians in diaspora and in the West Bank.” Prof. Rayyan also spoke about the importance of budgeting and the students’ presentations at the Forum saying, “We’ve seen great presentations and excellent ideas, despite the scarcity of budgets allocated to scientific research. I really think that bigger budgets for these scientific experiments would mean more meaningful results and it would raise the level of the universities and research centers. This in turn would benefit the Palestinian people as a whole.”
Board member Prof. Ashraf Ibrik said, “These conferences are very important to the advancement of research in general and to the organizers especially. It is also an opportunity for Palestine to widen its horizons in this field, connect between its scientists and the outside world, and close knowledge of scientists who have a highly scientific estimate of what this country needs in terms of resources and plans in order to push the ‘scientific wagon’ into the future.”
Dr. Katie Baransi-Karkaby elaborated on the conference saying, “There is no doubt that my representing the Galilee Society and the Research and Development Center is very important. We gave a presentation about our scientific and professional abilities in order to create opportunities for professional and scientific cooperations both with the Arab world and worldwide. Being the only female scientist in the conference is a huge honor. I hope that through this the option for wider participation of female scientists in the future conferences will be opened.”Commenting on this, Dr. Sobhi Basheer, CEO of Trans BioDiesel, said, “In the forum I had the chance to give a lecture about twenty years of work and persistence in biotechnology and how we managed to do scientific research in this field and reach industrial products which we marketed in international biotechnological markets.”
In conclusion, Baker Awawdy, the General Director of the GS, says, “It was an honor for us to participate in this Forum. Through the Forum we were able to connect with scientists from the West Bank and the diaspora and exchange experiences as well as present our professional research capabilities. Together we search for ways to cooperate on international scientific research that could benefit our fellow Palestinians and Arab society as a whole. As representatives of the Galilee Society we have enjoyed the high confidence in our work through interest in our workshops and the research papers which we presented. In addition, through many side conversations with Palestinian researchers and university presidents, we have had the chance to discuss ways to develop the cooperation between us.”
